


The Boy in the Shadows

by OverlyObsessedFangirl1



Series: Fractured Fairy Tales [5]
Category: Peter Pan & Related Fandoms, Peter Pan - J. M. Barrie
Genre: Dark, Death, Evil Peter Pan, F/M, Gen, Grim reaper au, Murder, Neverland (Peter Pan), Poison
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-27
Updated: 2018-08-27
Packaged: 2019-07-03 11:05:49
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 1,911
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15817617
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OverlyObsessedFangirl1/pseuds/OverlyObsessedFangirl1
Summary: Peter is really the grim reaper for children and Neverland is the afterlife.This is an idea that the cast came up with when our school put on Peter Pan. It gets pretty dark





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry these are so short

     The first time that she saw him, she was just six years old. She was waiting in the queue to go into the school for the first time, when she spotted him in the shadows of the big tree. He looked like he had been on the run; his clothes were torn and ragged, his hair was matted with twigs and leaves, and he obviously had not bathed for a long time. She studied him, wondering who he was, until he noticed her watching him. He grinned, showing surprisingly white teeth for such a filthy boy, and, winking, stepped back until he was against the trunk. Then, he seemed to melt into the shadows. She blinked, confused, but then the crowd started moving forward, and the boy was forgotten as she began her first day of school.  
     The next time that she saw the boy, two years had passed. She had begun to think that she had just imagined him that day, they day that he melted into the tree. She still did not speak to him, though, until the next time, three weeks later. After the initial shock that he looked exactly as she remembered him, she realized that she liked him. He treated her like an old friend, not like the miniature lady that most people thought she should be.  
     The two met several times as the girl grew up. The boy never changed, never aged. As time passed, the girl realized that she had fallen for the boy. While reluctant to return those feelings, the boy shared his greatest secret with the girl, in order to keep her, as he did have feelings for her, too.  
     Our story begins at the girl’s home, where we find her now thirteen years old, with the boy unaged, lying under the stars…


	2. Part 1

     "Peter, look!“ Wendy cried, pointing to the sky. "A shooting star!”  
     "Make a wish,“ Peter said, in a shadow as always.  
     "I wish I could be with you forever,” Wendy said, turning to look at him.  
     "Are you sure?“ Peter asked, stroking her hand with his thumb. "You know what I am; you wouldn’t be able to touch the light ever again. You would always be in the shadows.”  
     "I don’t care,“ Wendy insisted. "I love you, Peter.”  
     Something flickered in Peter’s eyes, something like triumph, but it was gone before Wendy could really notice it. Slowly, he reached into the shadows, his hand temporarily merging with them, and he pulled out a small crystalline bottle. Wendy smiled, barely restraining herself from clapping and squealing like she had the first time she had seen Peter shadow-merge. She took the bottle eagerly, but frowned when she could not remove the stopper. She looked at Peter, confused.  
     "Drink this before you go to bed,“ he instructed. "I’ll arrive at midnight, and take you to my world.”

     After Peter had carried her up the shadows to her window, Wendy looked at the bottle again. The stopper still wouldn’t come out, but Peter had assured her that it would loosen at the right time.  
     The sound of footsteps jerked her out of her reverie. She hurried back to her bed, stuffing the bottle under her pillow and kicking off her slippers as she dove under the blankets. Her head had just hit the pillow when the door opened. Nana bounded over to the open window and growled at the shadows. Nana always seemed to sense when Peter had visited.  
     Wendy’s mother quietly shut the window, and scolded Nana.  
     "See, there’s nothing wrong,“ she whispered. "Wendy is right here, perfectly fine.”  
     She guided Nana out of the room and shut the door, off to check on John and Michael.  
     Wendy breathed a sigh of relief. Her mother hadn’t noticed that the slippers were muddy and in a different location from when Wendy had gone to bed. After she heard her mother go downstairs, Wendy pulled out the bottle, and noticed that the stopper was loose. Pulling it out, she drank the contents in one gulp.  
     Almost immediately, she began to retch. The taste was awful. Her stomach protested the mix, and her head began to throb. The room spun, shifting in and out of focus. A ringing filled Wendy’s ears, and she collapsed back onto the bed, blacking out.


	3. Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They prepare to leave for Neverland

     "Wendy!“  
     Wendy bolted upright. Peter stood over her, waiting.  
     Shaking her head to clear it, Wendy noticed that her senses were different. She could see the shadows, but they weren’t just shadows anymore; rather, they were swirling masses of unformed shapes. Every so often, something would partially materialize, just to melt back into the shadows. She could hear the masses whispering, incoherent, but definitely whispering. Crawling out of bed, she noticed that she felt lighter.  
     "Wendy?” Peter sounded uncertain.  
     "Yes, Peter?“ Wendy asked, turning to him. She froze. He still looked like himself - the same raggedy, dirty blonde hair, same torn clothes, same dirt all over. The only physical difference was his eyes. The piercing green was swirling with black.  
     But even as he looked (almost) the same, he also looked completely different. Wendy couldn’t quite put her finger on it, but something seemed…off. He seemed more there than usual.  
     She buried her thoughts in the back of her mind as he smiled at her. She smiled back.  
     "Are you ready?” Peter asked.  
     "Yes,“ Wendy whispered. "But–”  
     "Second thoughts?“  
     "It’s just— can I say goodbye to my brothers?” Wendy asked.  
     Peter hesitated. Wendy noticed.  
      “I won’t wake them up,” she insisted.  
      “Alright,” Peter agreed, reluctantly.  
      Wendy tiptoed to the boys’ room, silently opening the door. She gave each of them a kiss on the forehead, whispered that she loved them, and was just about to leave when she heard:  
     "Wendy?“  
     Wendy turned back around.  
     Michael sat up, rubbing his eyes.  
     "Wendy, where are you going?”  
     "I’m going to a place where I will never grow up,“ she whispered. "A place where I can fly, a place with fairies and mermaids, and an adventure around every corner.”  
     Michael’s eyes grew wide. “Can I come?”  
     Wendy looked at Peter, waiting in the hall. He shrugged, indicating that it was her choice. Slowly, she nodded.  
     Michael jumped out of bed.  
     "John! John!“ he cried, running over to the other bed.  
     "Shh!” Wendy hissed, but too late. John was already awake.  
     "Wuzzgonon?“ he mumbled.  
     "Wendy’s taking us to a Neverland!” Michael practically shouted.  
     Wendy winced. If Michael didn’t settle down, someone would come to investigate.  
     "Michael, calm down! Nana will hear you!“  
     Michael quieted, but still bounded about, battling invisible pirates.  
     "What’s Neverland?” John asked.  
     "A land with everything and adventure needs,“ Peter spoke up, stepping into the room.  
      Michael froze, still fighting an imaginary foe.  
     "You’re sneaking around with a _boy?_ ” he asked. “Papa’s going to be so mad!”  
     "Not if you shut up!“ Wendy snapped.  
     Michael drooped. Wendy felt bad, but she couldn’t have him making so much noise.  
     "Adventures, huh? Let’s go.” John put on his glasses and slipped out of his bed. The three siblings followed Peter to Wendy’s window.  
     "How do we get there?“ Michael asked, finally whispering.  
     Peter pulled some glittery gray powder from his pocket. He sprinkled it on the brothers, who sneezed. Next, he opened the window.  
     "Jump out, think happy thoughts, and away we’ll fly,” he practically crowed.  
     "Jump out? We’ll fall to our deaths!“ John protested.  
     "We can’t fly!” Michael squealed.  
     "That’s what the dust is for,“ Peter replied, ignoring John. "It makes you fly. Look!”  
     Peter rode the shadows up to the ceiling, and around the room.  
     "My turn!“ Michael raced to the window and jumped out. He fell.  
     "Michael!” Wendy ran to the edge and looked out.  
     Michael was rising, still braced for impact, but slowly realizing that he was floating. He opened his eyes.  
     "I’m flying!“  
     "John, come on!”  
Peter flew out the window, joining Michael. John leapt out, fell for a bit, and rose next to the others.  
     Wendy stepped onto the sill, took one last look around her room, and blanched.  
     There was someone in her bed, someone that looked exactly like her, sleeping.  
     "Wendy?“  
     Wendy turned, and Peter threw some dust on her. Sneezing, Wendy forgot about the girl as she stepped off the ledge and immediately floated over to Peter.  
     "Let’s go,” she said, taking his hand.  
     With that, they flew through the shadows, towards the sky, and none of the siblings noticed the two still forms lying on the street, right underneath their sister’s window.


	4. Part 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arrival at Neverland

      They flew for what felt like years. They saw old stars explode into supernovas and new stars being born. By the time that the island came into view, Wendy was carrying Michael, and John was not even half awake. Wendy was still riding the wave of euphoria, but even she was beginning to tire. Only Peter seemed unaffected, bright eyed and flying in loops.  
      “Here we are,” he said, dropping upside–down in front of Wendy. “What do you want to do first?”  
      Wendy was about to answer when a little ball of light darted into her face. It bounced off of her nose, and zipped next to her ear. After making what sounded like urgent bell tolls, it flew behind Wendy’s head. The next thing that she knew, her hair was being yanked surprisingly hard.  
      “Hey! What-? OW!”  
      Peter snatched the light out of the air. “Tink, no! You can’t attack every person that I bring here!” To Wendy he said, “I’m sorry. This is Tinker Belle, a fairy. She has– issues. She doesn’t like strangers.”  
      Releasing the fairy, Peter whispered hurried instructions.  
      “There. She won’t hurt you again. How about you go home with her, and get to know each other. Meanwhile I’ll take the boys to see the pirates,” he added, as Michael began to stir. Hearing this, both John and Michael snapped wide awake.  
      “Pirates!”  
      Wendy hesitated, then nodded. She needed to rest, and there would be no getting Michael baac to sleep now that he knew where they where.  
      “Alright, but you two stay with Peter,” she commanded her brothers. They nodded hurriedly, then zoomed off, towards the cove far below.  
      Turning to Tinker Belle, she said, “lead the way, Tink.”  
      Tink made angry, clanging bell sounds, then shot toward the forest. Wendy followed, arms flapping to keep her balance.

* * *

      “Tink? Tinker Belle?” Wendy called out.  
      She had lost the fairy, and was now gliding around the treetops, searching. She was exhausted, lost, and fed up. Peter had promised her a wonderful new life, filled with adventures and magic. He said that he was hers, and hers alone. Instead, he was off with her brothers, spying on pirates, while she was sent to get acquainted with an unstable fairy who didn’t like her, and had managed to ditch her.  
      Just as she was about to give up and try to find the boys back at Pirate’s Cove, Wendy spotted movement on the floor. Was it Tink, or an animal? Wendy hovered, not wanting to get too close in case it _was_ an animal, but not ready to leave until she was sure that it wasn’t the pesky fairy. Suddenly, something shot out of the leaves, and pierced her chest. With a shriek, she fell, crashing through branches, and rolled down a small hill into a clearing. The last thing she saw before everything went black, was a small face, painted like the foliage, staring down at her, empty eyes wide.


End file.
